


Suspended

by DT_Marley



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Child Abuse, Gen, Physical Abuse, Pre-Sburb, School
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-24
Updated: 2019-02-24
Packaged: 2019-11-05 02:24:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,741
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17910188
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DT_Marley/pseuds/DT_Marley
Summary: Dave has trouble focusing in class, the consequences are what you would imagine.





	1. The Suspension

“Strider!”

The voice Snapped Dave out of his trance. He blinked slowly behind his sunglasses and sat up from where he’d been leaning forward across his desk. Not asleep. Just zoning out. One headphone hidden in his ear so he could ignore the droning voice of Mr. Corkland, his math teacher. Now that he’d been singled out he sighed.

“Yeah?’

“I asked you a question.” The expression on the older man’s face was of both disappointment and annoyance. Funny how those two seemed to go together so well. “Can you please finish the problem on the board and for heaven’s sake take those damn sunglasses off while you’re inside.” He folded his arms and scowled.

“No. I’m not taking them off.” Dave frowned right back. As much as he ever frowned which was a slight turn down to the corner of his mouth and nothing else. Then he glanced at the board. Yeah he could do it. Simple shit. But he didn’t want to move. Everything hurt like hell. 

“Dave. This isn’t a discussion. You can’t wear those inside.” His patience was wearing thin.

“I’m not taking them off.” He didn’t get what some people had against them. But now he could feel the eyes of everyone in the class shift towards him. Shit. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat wincing slightly as pain shot across his back.

“Take them off or you go to the office.” 

Not again… the third time this damn month and he couldn’t get suspended. He hesitated, on the one hand he could remove the shades and face whatever reaction he had coming or… go to the office and not take them off. Without a word he stood up and grabbed his backpack, raising an eyebrow expectantly at his teacher. 

“Dave… what are you doing…?” His teacher raised an eyebrow right back at the movement, a bit taken aback at the choice he’d just witnessed, but what did he care? Kid never paid attention and would probably end up dropping out at 16 anyways. 

“Going to the office. Or did you forget what you just told me to do.” his mouth twitched as he walked up to the front of the room feeling the stunned expressions of his fellow students following him. He paused by the chalkboard and looked at the problem, grabbing some chalk and scribbling in an answer as he went by. “I can show myself there.”

The teacher’s eyes widened and his mouth dropped open. “Now wait just a second--...” He stopped short when he saw the answer and had to do a double take as he realized that it was in fact the correct answer, then he looked up right as Dave closed the door behind himself.

As soon as he stepped into the hall he slid his second headphone in enjoying the beats playing while he walked along. He liked the empty halls. In all fairness he would prefer school this way: quiet, headphones, no people. It would never last of course. He’d make it to the office in about three minutes. He could enjoy one song at the most if he walked slow enough, though with the state he was in walking slow was the only option he had, so he did. 

Dave shoved his hands deep into his pockets and wandered slowly through the empty halls until he reached the office door. He waited for the song to end and his aural world to dissipate around him. He sighed as he removed both headphones, you don’t go into the principal’s office already breaking school rules. He wasn’t THAT stupid. Then he took in a deep breath and stepped inside.

The first thing that greeted him was the smell of erasers and fresh envelopes. Ah yes, the great scent symphony of unused office supplies just waiting to doom kids to detention and Absent marks on their permanent record. It sometimes felt like the office supplies were more eager to get kids in trouble than the actual faculty was.

“Back again so soon, Dave?” The secretary looked up as he entered and smiled at him in a sort of pitying way. She was nice but fake nice. 

“You missed me.” He faked a small smirk and leaned against her desk. “Kicked out of class and ruining my life. The usual.” He did his best to sound neutral and uncaring. No one can make you feel bad about something you’re apathetic about, right?

“Mr. Ferrest will see you in just a moment.” Her eyebrow twitched and she looked annoyed at where he was leaning. “Perhaps you might find yourself with more sympathy if you pretended that it mattered that you were ruining your life.”

She had a point there. But that wasn’t how life worked. He knew that. If you care about something then you got hurt by it. Everything will eventually hurt you so don’t care about anything, it wasn’t that complicated. “Y’all act like middle school is some serious shit.” he shifted, “it's just a bunch of asshats in ties going on and on about crap that doesn’t matter.”

The secretary was about to respond, her mouth open and ready to spew whatever adult answer she had programmed into her brain when the door to the principal’s office opened and a tall man with graying hair stood in the doorway.

“Sorry to hear you think that.” Mr. Ferrest nodded for Dave to come in and went into his office. “Third time this month, I think you know what that means.”

Dave followed him in and dropped into the seat that faced the desk, “suspension or some shit. Yeah, im familiar.”

As Mr. Ferrest sat down he observed the kid quietly. It wasn’t that he was a bad student. The work he turned in was good, better than most other kids even. But he had some behavioral issues that were outstanding and they seemed to just get worse with time regardless of any talking. “You don’t seem all that broken up about it.”

“Why should I be? It doesn’t matter. NONE of this matters.” He wanted to just get the slip of paper that told him not to come into the building for however many days it was and leave.

“I see that as a problem.”

He shifted in the chair, careful not to wince in front of the Principal. “Why?”

“Because it’s too early for you to give up on the rest of your life.” He tapped the desk thoughtfully. “Why did you get sent here today?”

“Mr. Corkland was being an ass.”

Mr. Ferrest nodded, “alright, what did he do?”

“He told me to take my shades off. No one else has a problem with them. Literally, no one. I wear them in gym class and no one gives a shit.” He actually frowned now, for real, with his whole mouth.

“....Why did he ask you to take them off? Were you asleep?” He wanted to find out what was going on. There was always something off about the kid. Not in a a bad way, but it just felt like he was hiding something. Maybe it WAS the sunglasses, but he didn’t want to assume that.

“No.” Zoning out, yes. Asleep, no. He knew better than that. “I don’t sleep through class.”

“Mr. Strider… Your behavior is a bit… incongruous. I don’t understand, you seem to not care about leaving class, skipping class, or any sort of disciplinary action we take. But your grades are good and you seem offended at the thought of sleeping through class. What am i supposed to make of that?” He watched Dave carefully.

The question caught him off guard, so he just shrugged. It wasn’t like it mattered anyways, no matter what they asked him he’d still get the suspension. “Look… sir, I don’t see as how it makes any difference. I’m not a moron. I know how to use my brain. It’s not my fault your staff are a bunch of thoughtless nitwits who don’t give two shits about anything except the fact that I wear shades. They’re not coming off. I’m not taking them off. It’s never going to happen. So just give me my damn suspension already so I can at least walk home without being harrassed by anyone.” He sat up and folded his arms a little faster than he should have. He felt pain ricochet across his back and he couldn’t hide the flinch of pain on his face.

Mr. Ferrest raised an eyebrow at this, “Dave… are you alright? It looked like you were hurt…”

“Fell off my skateboard.” He didn’t betray any emotion. “Look. I’m not feeling this today. I already got kicked out of class, just sign whatever shit you gotta so I can leave.” 

“Hold on that’s not how this is going to work--”

“Why not? I’m the waste of a seat here anyways. Just give me my suspension so I can deal with it.” He grabbed the arms of the chair tightly, starting to get the sense that maybe this time Mr. Ferrest was going to start asking more questions than he wanted him to.

“Because something is wrong here and it needs to be discussed. If you still want to stay in class we can talk about an in-school suspension… maybe a saturday suspension… I don’t think you hate school enough to give up on it so fast.” he leaned forward.

This made Dave lean back against the chair. Too close, way the hell too close. No. nope. No. no. he almost scooted the chair backwards. “Whatever just do what you want!” he looked away, to be completely honest he didn’t hate school it was just the people that were shitheads. 

Mr. Ferrest leaned back, a bit surprised at the reaction. “Alright, you go home early today. BUT not until after you see the school counselor.” He grabbed some paper and scribbled a note on it then shoved it into an envelope. Then he reached into his desk and pulled out a yellow slip, filling it out quickly and handing both papers to Dave. “Her office is in the Nurse’s office. Give her the note. The yellow slip is the suspension notice. You’re back in school monday and it needs to be signed by your guardian.”

Dave nodded and stood up then paused, “counselor? What the hell do I have to see her for?”

“She’s just going to talk to you. See if she can’t help you out with some ways to focus better.” He smiled at the kid. “Give her a shot. She can help you.”

“I don’t NEED help.” But if that was what he had to do then so be it. He shrugged and turned to leave. “Fine.” He left before he could be told anything else, he’d heard all he needed to hear. 

The secretary looked up as Dave stepped back out the door, “done already?”

Dave ignored her. He just left the office and went a little ways farther down the hall to where the door to the Nurse’s office was. Shit. there was no way this was going to end well. He considered just leaving, but they would probably find out and make him go on monday anyways. Best to just get it over with. He sighed and stepped in.

.:.

The smell of cigarette smoke hit him as soon as he opened the door. Ah yes, home sweet home, where the air was toxic and if you were lucky the worst that would happen was a punch to the ribs. He shut the door quietly behind him as he stepped inside. Maybe if he was careful enough then--

“Hey shithead. It’s 11 AM. why the f*ck are you home.” 

The voice made him freeze, ice running down his spine. He was already on edge from the LENGTHY discussion with the school counselor and he didn’t intend to bump right into the one person he’d wanted to avoid. He slowly turned his head to look at the sofa where his bro was seated, his favorite puppet Cal next to him.

“You gonna answer me? Or did you forget how to talk?” At this point Bro stood up and walked over getting very close and looking down at Dave, using the 2 foot height difference for every inch of its advantage.

“Yeah. just surprised me. Suspended.” he shoved the papers at Bro and stepped around the other, he wanted as much space between them as possible. “They’re calling you later.”

Dave made it about three steps before Bro practically materialized in front of him. “This says you were giving the teacher shit. What the f*ck is wrong with you?” It was odd how Bro’s voice never changed from the emotionless harsh tone, even when he was slapping Dave across the face. It was that same old Texan accent, same old inflections, same old accusatory implications.

The hit made Dave stumble back a few steps, “he was giving ME shit. Not like you actually care.”

“What’s this about some Dr. Bitch.”

“School counselor. She’s calling you.” he couldn’t imagine why though. Shed gone on and on about how he needed to wear a helmet while skateboarding and how if he was hurt he needed to see the nurse or get proper medical treatment or something. Safe to say, it had nothing to do with helping him focus. “She said she wanted to talk to you about something.” He held the side of his face that was now turning bright red and was stinging.

Now there was silence between them. He could feel Bro just staring at him, that couldn’t be good. That was bad. Silence…. Bad. he backed away a step. “What. She probably just thinks I need meds or something.”

“No, DUMBASS.” yep, Bro was mad. “You know what she’s doing? She’s trying to get you in trouble with the police. She’s trying to make it so that you have to live somewhere else.” his hand curled into a fist, crumpling the paper.

“Why the hell would she do that?!” What….?

“What. did. You. do.” The question came sharp and clear.

“Nothing! I… “ he tried to think back, but he couldn’t fathom where this random lady would have any cause to get him arrested! “All I did was not want to take my shades off! You said never to take ‘em off so I didn’t!”

“You f*cked up somewhere!” But this time he visibly held back from slamming his fist into the side of Dave’s face. “And now you’re home early. And for how long this time? Three days? How many times have I told you, skipping school and cutting class isn’t a f*cking OPTION. You want to be a worthless piece of shit forever?! Then great, you’ve got a brilliant start going!”

Dave took another step back, his face remained stoic but he could feel his body starting to shake slightly as adrenaline pumped through him. “I just followed what you said….”

“DID I TELL YOU TO BE F*CKING STUPID?!?!?”

He shook his head no and bit the inside of his cheek. “No...i… sorry…”

“Sorry doesn’t fix this, kid.”

“I know…. I know… it won’t happen again….” his hands were now visibly shaking which he tried to hide by grabbing onto his backpack straps. 

“You want to be home so bad? Fine. You’re home. If I see you at all before monday morning you face me.” Bro was practically snarling.

Dave nodded and moved to step around bro and head into his room. Staying quiet and out of sight was fairly easy even in the small space they shared for an apartment. He was too busy trying to move fast he didn’t see the fist coming in and slamming hard in the center of his face, snapping the sunglasses in half across the bridge of his nose. Blood came spurting out almost instantly as he stumbled backwards into the wall.

“Never. Again. Little man.” Was all Bro added on before stepping around him and heading back to where he had been before. 

Even though he was fairly certain he was out of eye line, Dave nodded and went into his room as quickly as possible. He shut the door silently and let his bag fall to the ground. He didn’t make any move to clean his face or remove the shades. Not now. Instead he limped over to his computer and absently started scrolling through things. Then he saw his friend online and opened up a chat window:

 

**TG: Hey.**

**EB: HEY! Dude it’s been so long! How have you been?!**

**TG: oh… that long, huh? I’m fine, you?**

**EB: i’ve been alright, mostly just dealing with my annoying dad. Can you believe he said I couldn’t go to summer camp if I got a C in English!?**

**TG: shit dude, what a drag…**

**EB: I KNOW. he’s the worst.**

**EB: Aren’t you home a little early? I know we’re in different time zones but its like… 11:30 where you are… you sick?**

**TG: nah. Skipping the day. Cool kids gotta do cool shit. You know how we roll.**

**EB: uh, if I ever skipped school i’d be killed.**

**TG: because you don’t have the epitome of the words “hella rad individual” for a dad or a bro. He doesn’t give a shit what I do.**

**EB: ah you’re so lucky!**

**TG: yeah…**

 

Dave had to look away from the screen. His cheeks were wet and he couldn’t tell if it was because of where he’d been hit or the screen brightness. Maybe something else, who even gave a shit. Not him. He tried to ignore the feeling that came with these conversations. The longer they chatted the better he felt. The more he told himself it was fine, the better it felt. Or at least the less he felt, which he figured was about the same thing at this point.


	2. Out of focus (Part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dave waits out his suspension by staying out of his bro's way as much as possible, somehow he can't even do that right.

The world shifted from a blurry and fuzzy mess to a crisp and clear image as Dave slowly rotated the focus on the camera. He liked that, seeing the change and watching everything come together, backgrounds slowly dropping out and subjects becoming clear. He took slow and steady breaths in time with the music thumping in his ears as the chain link fence in front of the lens fazed into vision and the colorful graffitied wall behind it blurred into a swirling mass of colors. Or maybe they were swirling from the probable concussion? It was hard to tell sometimes.

He glanced through the viewfinder for a few seconds more to line up the shot before snapping the photo. He liked to shoot on a manual camera, and to be fair it wasn’t really much of a choice since it was all he had and all he’d ever had. Not that he didn’t love it: the metal buttons, the sound of the gears and parts inside moving as he advanced film, the shutter click, the wooden paneling, everything about it just screamed that this camera had been loved and owned for years before he’d found it in a thrift shop. The history in its body was part of the magic of it. Of course, if he was a sentimental sap he’d say it out loud. But he wasn’t. He was too cool for that shit.

After taking the photo he stood up and glanced around, the alley was still deserted. Perfect. He draped the neck strap of the camera over one shoulder and climbed the chain link fence. Really, the twenty feet had looked a lot shorter from the ground. He glanced down as he swung one leg over the top  inbetween where the barbed wire at the top was cut, careful not to catch any of his clothes on it before dropping down on the other side. 

A frequent walk he made was through the alleys between the large apartment skyscrapers in the city. Because of the fences that most people took as a signal to stay away and the “No Trespassing” signs that deterred anyone else, it was the perfect place to be alone. Plus, the fire escapes were full access and if you were lucky, a ladder would be within reach. He hoped that was today.

“Just one break would be perfect. Come on.” he muttered to himself under his breath. 2 days into being suspended and Bro had *finally* left the house meaning he could as well. The only iffy part came about when he needed to get home. Not that bro would go looking for him. If his room was quiet he’d just figure that Dave was being quiet. He wouldn’t call or text. That meant coming home he’d just have to get creative, but that wasn’t impossible. 

He glanced up as he approached the side of a 20-story building looking for the… hell. Yes. a very small smirk tugged at the side of his mouth as he grabbed the rungs of the ladder and pulled himself onto the fire escape. The heat would make the climb a bit miserable but it would be worth it in the end. He had his headphones on and that would make it a bit easier to handle. 

As Dave climbed he could feel sweat rolling down his back under his backpack and sliding down his face. Shit the heat was too much sometimes. You’d think that you’d get used to it living somewhere like houston, but you never did. It was always there: the thick air making it hard to breathe, the hot sun making it hard to see, the pounding headaches that went along with dehydration, the stench of people sweating as you walked down the street or sat in class. It was truly disgusting. 

Almost as if his body knew where his brain had wandered off to while he was climbing the endless stairs, he reached the top. As soon as his head past the roof of the building he felt a stiff cool breeze ruffling his hair and drying the sweat on his face almost instantly. He felt a shiver run through him, damn that felt good. He quickly changed the song to something slightly more upbeat and chill. If he was going to enjoy this atmosphere he was going to damn well enjoy it.

The first thing he did was walk over to the edge of the roof behind some of the large air conditioning units that way he would be out of immediate sight if anyone decided to come onto the roof. As soon as he was in the shade of the unit he dropped his bag unceremoniously and sat down, grabbing a bottle of apple juice out and taking a few long gulps of the now warm and sweet liquid. He took a few deep breaths and allowed his eyes to close. It was nice to be out of his room, nice to be away from people, and nice to be able to breathe without the constant panic of being too loud or being walked in on by bro. 

He let the music fill his head for a while, just letting the melodies play around in his skull, bouncing off the insides and reverberating through his bones. Sometimes he liked to pretend that he was made of music: that it ran through his veins, supported his body, wound itself around his limbs and made him walk and get up in the morning. Sometimes it actually did, be the reason he got up at all that is. It had the quality of both translating the indiscernible feelings: the knotted tension he got his chest, the silent screaming in his brain, or the violent churning in his stomach, and it made them palatable. He could understand music. He could FEEL it. When it came to enjoying the sounds and melodies trapped inside of him, it was the only way it ever felt like anything made sense. Because emotions weren’t cool. Because showing any feeling was weakness. Because you have to build walls to be safe. Because the only way that you could figure anything out without telling anyone else. Because that was-- he caught himself getting too cerebral and opened his eyes. 

The world looked different through his cracked shades. The small fissures running across his vision made everything look broken. He slid them off his face and took his camera out again, sliding the dark glass over the lens and holding it out to view the skyline through. He made a few adjustments to the aperture and exposure then focused on the skyline of tall buildings around him, snapping a few shots then experimenting with a few more. 

The next move he made was to sit on the edge of the roof with his legs hanging over the side. He leaned forward and took a few photos straight down to the street below then after he was done just sitting and looking down. The distance made him feel further away from people. That was something that always confused him: the need to reach out to people but the absolute guttural urge to separate himself from people as much as possible at the same time. By all right it made no sense. Not that he hated people, but being around them was exhausting. When it was his friends online he felt safer, they couldn’t see him react to things and they didn’t question what he said. He could be “the cool kid”. He could be anything he wanted to say, and they would have no reason to question it or make fun of him for it.

“Thinking sounds a bit f*cked though…” he sighed and pulled one leg up from the chasm to lean against his knee. “And now you’re talking to yourself. Absolutely perfect. If he isn’t going to be pissed about the suspension still it will be the downward spiral into madness surrounded by the giant dicks that make up the skyline.” He gestured at the buildings around him with his arms opened wide, “Don’t think you can hide your metaphorical significance from me! Im not a moron.” but that didn’t feel right, “fine. I take that back. I’m a bit of a dumbass.” 

Dave rubbed the cut and bruising on his face from where Bro had reminded him exactly how much of a dumbass he was. “He’s wrong… no.. f*cking hell… someday he’ll make sense… I just, maybe not now? Or it’s too ironic to get? Or i’m just too stupid to understand.” He made a face. “Just kinda wish I could do something right…”

He looked out at the sky, watching it start to darken now as the sun slowly sank towards the horizon. He’d need to get moving if he was going to be home before it got too late. Plus Bro might come back and he couldn’t get there after him. He turned around and stepped back onto the roof, gathering his things and sliding the camera very carefully into his bag. If that got hurt it would be like losing a limb. So he wrapped it in a spare t-shirt that he held onto and made sure it was secure before he stepped towards the fire escape again. 

“Who the hell are you.”

Dave froze. Ice filling his limbs. Stay calm. He turned slowly and stared up at the large security guard who looked like he’d been enjoying a cigarette. “I live here.”

“....this is an office building.” The guard narrowed his eyes and stepped forward, dropping the cigarette to the ground and extinguishing it with one foot.

The smell of the smoke caught the breeze and blew it straight into Dave’s face and he had to stifle a small cough while visibly shuddering. “O-oh… must be on the wrong building then...you know, google maps can be a bit of a bitch….”

“Come on.” The guard stepped closer, “you need to come with me, kid.” he didn’t look anything past unamused.

Dave almost choked on the smoke and flinched backwards as the guard approached, “i can show myself down. It's just a damn building… I know how to get down anyways….” 

“Look you’re trespassing. Come on, i’ll take you down stairs and we can call your folks and they’ll come pick you up, alright? Don’t make this harder than it has to be.” But now the guard was alert. You could see it in his eyes.

“Folks…? No i can just walk home, I don’t live far… look I don’t want to bother them and they’ll be mad… uh…” behind the shades he glanced at the fire escape. That seemed like a bad idea. Even if he made it down then the guard would just wait at the bottom. He had a radio. There could be more of them and that would mean trouble.

The guard’s eyes narrowed as he saw the glance, “look kid, you’re not getting arrested just come along quietly.”

That fire escape was starting to look reaaaal inviting. Dave took another, longer glance at it, letting his eyes linger on it for a second to long and even moving toward it a step. An instant later he was yanked backwards by the strap on his backpack. 

“Hey!!” he stumbled backwards and felt a hand wrap around his wrist.

“Dammit…  you didn’t have to… look. Just come on.” It wasn’t hard to pull the kid along because he was so light. And even with him flailing around like fish out of water.

Dave didn’t like how his sneakers skidded along the rooftop. “Look I won’t come back just dont… don’t call anyone alright!?” He was pulled inside and for the first time saw the interior of the building which was, incredibly fancy. Oh f*ck.

“keep it down, people are trying to get work done here still.* he pulled Dave a bit closer and planted two hands on his shoulders, walking him through the hallways and into an elevator. “Do you know what this building is, kid?”

Now Dave stayed quiet. That kind of question always led to a “this was a really dumb choice” kind of conversation. And maybe telling this security guy that he came up here at least once a month wasn’t a good idea.

“Corporate headquarters for Minute Maid juice. Means we have security.”

“Well it’s not that great if a 12 year old can get through it.” He stopped struggling as they stood in the elevator going down, fanciest elevator he’d ever seen. “Well you can tell corporate offices that Minute Maid apple juice is shit.” Which was genuinely true. He preferred Motts, the empty bottle was still in his bag.

“You gonna cooperate and stay quiet?” The guard glanced down at him,

“Fine.” He tried not to think about what was about to happen when some random number called his Bro and told him that he was being held for trespassing.

“Look, it's almost five PM and I don’t want to have to press charges against a child and make a whole thing. So all we’re gonna do is call your folks, and you never show up on our roof again.” The guard sounded very tired.

“I’ll just go. You don’t have to call anyone.”

“You’re a minor kiddo. I’m not just letting you wander off.”

The phrasing of the statement made Dave VERY uncomfortable and he went rigid. “Don’t.” The hands on his shoulders were starting to feel very heavy and he wanted to sink through the floor. 

“Don’t what? Look, don’t make this harder…” he glanced down confused, was this kid going to try and threaten him?

“Don’t touch me!!” He stepped away quicker than the guard could grab and slammed his back into the corner of the elevator. He could feel panic rising up. The space was too small. The guard was too big. Big. threat. Strife!! The elevator dinged and the door opened. He ran. 

“Shit!!” The guard wasn’t expecting that. And he whipped around as the kid sprinted into the lobby. “HEY!! Stop him!!!” There was a lot of shouting as a few other security guards jumped into action, chasing the kid across the shiny floors and cutting off the exit. 

Dave skidded to a halt, sneaker squeaking loudly as he looked up at the now group of tall guards hemming him in. shit shit shit shit. He turned in a small circle to look for an exit, but nothing. 

“Caught him on the roof.” The first guard jogged over and grabbed his arm again. But the squirming had started again. And now the kid was starting to look like a caged animal. That couldn't be good. And he certainly didn’t want to deal with this right now. “Come on. Just put him in the security office and call his parents.” He waved another guard over and handed Dave over roughly. “I’m off soon.”

The other guard nodded and didn’t say anything before pulling dave over to behind the security desk also while pulling off the backpack and dumping it at the security table before opening a small room with a table in it. “Stay in here. Keep quiet.” Then he slammed to the door shut and locked it.

The guard sighed and went over to the backpack, poking through it until he found a cheap cell phone with a cracked screen. “Bingo.” He clicked through it until he saw the name “Bro”, then he shrugged, brother was close enough as long as he also wasn’t a minor.

Inside the room Dave couldn’t sit still. He jumped up as soon as the door closed and tried the handle himself, locked, of course. Bro was going to kill him. Murder him. Throw his body off a building. Dance on the grave he’d never have. He could feel the panic rising again. His hands shaking. He wanted his headphones. He wanted his music back. He needed to calm down and ignore the screaming inside of him and the static that was seething through his veins. Calm down calm down calm down!!! Nothing. Radio static.

.:.

It took maybe an hour before someone unlocked the door. Dave glanced up from where he was sitting with his head down on the table. Then he immediately regretted that decision by looking up and seeing the rage radiating off of bro who stood with his arms folded behind the security officer. 

“His bag is at the front, sorry to call you away from your dinner.” The security guard turned to leave, “don’t forget to drop off your visitor pass at the front desk.” Then he waved for Dave to follow.

The kid stood shakily and walked around the table, not bearing to look up at the pointed shades staring daggers down at him. Silently, but still there. He went around the opposite side of the table, keeping at least an arm’s reach out of Bro.

“Sorry again, his stuff is at the security desk. And next time, sir, we will have to call the police. Trespassing is serious.” he grabbed the backpack and handed it to Dave.

Bro nodded, “believe me. It won’t happen again.” Weirdly it didn’t sound like he was very mad. But as with most things, Bro was good at having a mask. A stoic mask. 

Dave nodded and shouldered his bag then followed Bro as he walked towards the door without another word. He bit the inside of his mouth. He was screwed. He didn’t look up at all as the left the building and approached a crappy, beat up pick up truck. 

“In. I don’t want to hear shit from you.” bro climbed into the truck and turned it on almost instantly. He barely gave dave enough time to climb into the passenger seat before he slammed his foot on the gas and tore off down the street.

They drove in silence. You could have cut the tension with a knife, or more appropriately, a katana. Dave slouched in the passenger seat and continued to stare at the floor until they got back to their own building. Then they climbed out of the truck in silence. Walked back inside in silence. Rode the elevator in silence. And stepped into the apartment in silence. Then the door slammed.

“Are you f*cking STUPID.” Bro stayed by the door as Dave walked further into the apartment and stopped. “No. don’t even answer that.” now he walked over and grabbed Dave by both shoulders. “First the suspension. Missing school. Now i find out that you’re missing school to go be a punk ass BITCH and break the law!!!”

Dave stayed limp. There was no response. He just looked up at bro through the cracked glasses. His whole body felt like it wanted to run ans his stomach hit the floor as the pointed shades got closer. Then he felt his feet hit the floor and he stumbled backwards. 

Bro let go and swung. He felt the crunching as Dave’s ribs cracked and the body sank into the hit. “I didn’t raise you to be a little shit! He swung again and felt more cracking. “I DIDN’T RAISE YOU AND GIVE UP EVERYTHING FOR YOU TO HAVE YOU F*CK THIS ALL UP!!!!” Now he stepped back and looked at the collapsed figure on the floor. “Why the f*ck were you up there.”

Dave was curled in on himself now. He wanted to clutch his sides but touching the now broken ribs would hurt worse. He whimpered and looked up at Bro still standing over him “j-just…. Wanted… ph…” He could barely get any words out now.

“Just wanted WHAT.” He looked over at the bag and tore it open. He rooted through it until he found the carefully wrapped camera and tore the t-shirt off, holding it up. “This it? You think you dumbass pictures are worth this? WORTH TAKING STUPID RISKS AND THROWING YOUR LIFE AWAY!?!?”

“N-no…! Bro… its….” he tried to sit up and reach out for the camera but his ribs wouldn’t let him. 

“Bullshit.” He snarled now. The expression looked horrifying and foreign on the usually calm face. “This ends. NOW.” 

“W-what….. end-...NO!!!” He watched on in horror as bro tore open the back of the camera and ripped the film out, instantly exposing everything so film turned black. Dave reached out to grab it but as soon as he did Bro threw the camera down onto the floor on top of his hand, everything shattered. Bits of glass from the lens went sailing in all directions, pieces of twisted metal rolled across the floor, blood from Dave’s hand now staining the carpet red. Then one black sneaker slammed down across what was still left of the body of the camera on top of Dave’s hand. 

He screamed. Glass got shoved deep under his skin, bones snapped, and his whole hand started turning purple. He screamed so loud he couldn’t hear anything else around him. Then between the hysterical gulps of air he started sobbing. Both the physical pain that now seemed to manifest itself inside of him and also the gut wrenching reality that his one prized-possession was now smashed to pieces. 

“Shut the f*ck up.” Bro knelt down next to him and grabbed Dave’s chin, forcing them to look at each other. “You keep this up, i break all of your shit. You keep this up and you lose everything. If. i. Hear. one more time that you’re being a stupid ass. That you’re suspended. That you are being a f*cking idiot. The only thing you WILL know is strife. Got it?” his grip tightened and his fingernails dug into Dave’s skin deep, cutting into his cheek as the kid nodded weakly. “Good.” Then he dropped Dave and went into the kitchen as if nothing happened.

Dave curled up small. Then shakily picked himself up, stumbling toward his room. He needed to be away. Needed space. Needed….. Anything. He managed to make it into his room and collapse onto his bed. He stared out the window, watching the sky go dark like over-exposed film as the sun finally set. Then he lay there silently. Keep quiet. No noise. Don’t bother him. He stared straight ahead as tears started pooling in his eyes, making his crisp and clear vision go blurry as his cheeks got wet and blood poured out of his mangled hand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's part 2!!! I hope you like it!! I would also just like to say that the section with the manual camera breaking made me so sick to write because 1) those camera's are heavy AF and 2) If anyone smashed mine I would cry for the rest of my life :'( anyways, thanks for reading!!!

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! this one is kind of a two part story cuz they were written at different times. I didn't plan on the two being related but they ended up that way anyways! so Here is part 1, Thanks for reading!


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